Chu Qing had barely left the city gates when he immediately released his Soul Power and flew forward at full speed, doing everything he could to get away from there as quickly as possible.
Unexpectedly, a powerful wave of Soul Power surged toward him. A pair of withered hands grabbed his shoulder, and his whole body instantly went numb as if he'd been struck by lightning.
Chu Qing hurriedly circulated his Soul Power and struggled with all his might, but those seemingly frail hands remained locked around his shoulders. Even after putting all his strength into it, he still couldn't break free.
Looks like I didn't get away after all. Chu Qing sighed inwardly. Darkness swam before his eyes, and he fainted.
When Chu Qing awoke, he found himself in a cave. He immediately circulated his Soul Power, and Void Devouring Flame appeared in an instant, swirling around his body and forming a protective layer.
"Stop struggling. Even if you're a genius, you're no match for this old man right now."
Chu Qing looked up. The man before him was staring coldly at him. He had a head of dark green hair, a piercing gaze, and an icy aura that radiated from his entire body.
"This junior, Chu Qing, pays his respects to Senior Dugu." Seeing who had brought him here, Chu Qing immediately stopped struggling and bowed.
"Innate Full Soul Power, a remarkably powerful body, victories over both Yu Tianheng and my granddaughter—and you even recognized who I was right away. Boy, you're quite something." Dugu Bo watched him with keen interest, his eyes like a venomous snake in the dark, fixing on prey that had wandered near its territory.
Chu Qing had just started to speak when a large hand clamped around his throat. Dugu Bo let go just as Chu Qing was about to suffocate, then demanded, "Speak! What does Whale Rubber do? Is that what made your body so powerful?" A vicious glint shone in Dugu Bo's eyes. He had no time to chat with a child; he wanted to force the most valuable answers out of him as quickly as possible.
Chu Qing sucked in several great gulps of air and thought, Poison Douluo is treacherous and sinister. One wrong word, and I could lose my life. After a moment's thought, he replied, "You're on the verge of death, old man, and you're still worrying about Whale Rubber?"
Dugu Bo froze. He hadn't expected the little brat before him to speak to him like that. He snapped, "What did you say?!"
"I never expected Senior Dugu to be on the verge of death and still have the time to ponder Whale Rubber. Truly a pitiful sight!"
Dugu Bo had been struck where it hurt, and his heart tightened. Yet outwardly, he remained calm. "What a joke! I'm a Titled Douluo, and I've roamed the world my entire life without ever meeting my match. How could I be on the verge of death? You're at death's door yourself, and you still dare to spout nonsense?"
"Your death wouldn't matter much. You're an old man, after all. But your lovely, adorable granddaughter is the one I pity. She's so young, yet she's been poisoned too, and she doesn't have much time left!"
This time, Dugu Bo could no longer hold back. "Boy, you still dare to spout nonsense? You're asking for death!"
A terrifying pressure swept over Chu Qing, and Dugu Bo looked ready to strike.
Bracing himself against the pressure, Chu Qing said, "Does Senior Dugu really not want to know how to cure the poison?"
Dugu Bo froze. Could this boy really know how to cure it? He studied the lad. Though young, he was exceptionally capable. His station was low, yet he was neither servile nor arrogant. Could such an extraordinary boy really have a solution?
His own poison wasn't the important thing. What he least wanted to see was his precious granddaughter poisoned as well, inheriting this burden of a life steeped in poison. Even if there were only the slimmest chance, he was willing to try!
With that thought, Dugu Bo withdrew his Soul Power and said, "Hmph! I'll give you a chance. If you can save me, I'll agree to do three things for you! Don't think that's too little. Do you know what a Titled Douluo's promise is worth on the Douluo Continent? If you dare deceive me, I'll make sure you die without a place to be buried!"
Seeing that things had eased, Chu Qing said, "Actually, it won't be difficult. The only thing we need to solve is that I need a few rather rare medicinal herbs. Do you have any, Senior Dugu?"
Dugu Bo sneered. He had spent his life studying poison. He might not have other rare treasures, but when it came to medicinal herbs...
"You've come to the right person! The one thing I'm never short of is medicinal herbs. Follow me!"
Then he grabbed Chu Qing and flew down from the cave halfway up the mountain. Before long, they reached a valley in the forest. When they were about a hundred meters above the valley floor, Dugu Bo released his grip and flung Chu Qing away!
He simply couldn't stand the arrogant, overbearing brat. The boy called him "old man" every other sentence. Although he couldn't kill him for now, there was no harm in giving him a scare first.
Dugu Bo watched Chu Qing with a cold smile. He could already picture the boy begging for mercy. He hadn't meant to kill him; he only wanted to teach him a lesson. With the strength of a Titled Douluo, rescuing a child from a hundred-meter fall would be no trouble at all.
He quietly waited for Chu Qing to beg for mercy, but the sound never came. Instead, the sight before him left him utterly stunned.
A pair of wings made of flame suddenly spread from Chu Qing's sides, and he flew steadily downward.
Once again, Dugu Bo's entire understanding of the world had been turned upside down.
Chu Qing paid him no mind and carefully studied the scene before him. A hot spring lay in the valley. The pool wasn't large, but its waters were sharply divided into two distinct colors: milky white and vermilion.
"The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well!" Chu Qing stared at the spring, unable to hide his excitement. It looked like he was about to strike it rich this time.
"The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well? You mean this spring?" Dugu Bo had caught up by now. He asked in confusion.
"Exactly!" Chu Qing couldn't hide his excitement. "With this, I'm seventy percent certain I can cure your poison!"
"What? Only seventy percent?" Dugu Bo's expression darkened.
"Seventy percent is already quite good for poison you've had for decades. Do you have a better method?" Chu Qing replied nonchalantly.
Dugu Bo's expression stiffened. Chu Qing was right. For decades, he had searched endlessly for a solution, traveling across the entire Douluo Continent without finding one. His parents, children, and others had all died from the poison, leaving only his granddaughter, Dugu Yan—and now even she...
"What exactly is the method?" Dugu Bo forced down his impatience and asked anxiously.
After all, this concerned not only his own life, but also his granddaughter's.
If he could save his granddaughter, he'd gladly agree to three conditions. He wouldn't even care if he had to die!
"Before I tell you, you have to agree to one condition first." Chu Qing spoke with a cheeky grin.
"Hurry up and say it!" Dugu Bo was about to lose his mind. They had already made it here, and Chu Qing was still making demands! If not for Yan Yan, he would have slapped the boy to death long ago!
"You have to let me pick whichever Immortal Herbs I want from this garden!" Chu Qing said seriously.
"What's so difficult about that? Forget letting you pick Immortal Herbs. If you can cure the poison in my body, I'd gladly give you the whole garden!"
"Great! Senior Dugu, you're a generous man!" Chu Qing grinned, then prepared to tell Dugu Bo how to cure the poison.